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United States Patent |
5,127,184
|
Cosentino
|
July 7, 1992
|
Flower arranging apparatus
Abstract
A guide for the placement of flora into flora receiving means such as a
conventional flower pot with moistened florist foam deposited therein to
assist the novice in creating a substantially symmetrical arrangement of
professional quality. The guide comprises a base having a central opening
for positioning around the flora receiving means and includes a plurality
of resilient, elongated wires extending therefrom to form a symmetrical
area such as a dome defined by the wires and base. In the preferred
embodiment, a square frame supported by adjustable legs may be positioned
to surround the flora receiving means and includes linear extensions
having notches cut or otherwise formed therein for releasable attachment
of the base thereto such that the symmetrical area of the base is coaxial
with the flora receiving means. The wires of the base define a plurality
of spaced openings through which cut flora is passed and inserted stem
first into the florist foam such that the free ends of the flora do not
extend substantially beyond the area defined by the wires. Once the area
is substantially filled with flora, the guide is removed from the frame.
The user may then remove the flower pot and resulting symmetrical
arrangement from within the confines of the frame or may instead use a
second guide concentrically larger than the first to create a second layer
of symmetrically placed flora to the arrangement.
Inventors:
|
Cosentino; Ronald R. (P.O. Box 393, Seneca Falls, NY 13148)
|
Appl. No.:
|
533280 |
Filed:
|
June 4, 1990 |
Current U.S. Class: |
47/41.01; 47/41.12 |
Intern'l Class: |
A01G 005/00 |
Field of Search: |
47/41.01,41.11,41.12
|
References Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
2781651 | Feb., 1957 | Cutler | 47/41.
|
4964237 | Oct., 1990 | Specht | 47/41.
|
Foreign Patent Documents |
478221 | Jun., 1929 | DE2 | 47/41.
|
3342370 | May., 1985 | DE | 47/41.
|
4395 | Jan., 1905 | FR | 47/41.
|
2479649 | Apr., 1980 | FR | 47/41.
|
12806 | ., 1894 | GB | 47/41.
|
851 | ., 1915 | GB | 47/41.
|
Primary Examiner: Raduazo; Henry E.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: McGuire; Katherine
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Apparatus for creating a substantially symmetrical flower arrangement
comprising:
a) flora securing means adapted to accept and securely grip the stemmed
portions of flora therein;
b) a framework comprising:
i) a first pair of spaced, parallel, linear members;
ii) a second pair of spaced, parallel, linear members attached and
extending transversely to said first pair of parallel members, said first
and second pairs of members in combination defining a substantially
square, open center, said first and second pairs of members intersecting
each other at points between the free ends thereof thereby defining eight
individual and integral, linear extensions of said first and second pair
of members; and
iii) means attached to and supporting said linear members above and in a
plane parallel to a substantially horizontal surface, said framework being
of a size permitting placement of said flora securing means within said
open center;
c) at least one flora placement guide having a base portion defining a
symmetrical, central opening and further including a plurality of
elongated, wire-like filaments attached to and extending from said base to
form a symmetrical area defined by said filaments and said base, said
filaments intersecting at an axis which extends through the center of said
opening of said base in a direction perpendicular to the plane in which
said base lies; a plurality of openings being defined between each of said
intersecting filaments with said openings being of a predetermined size
allowing passage of each end of said flora therethrough; and
d) means releasably securing said base of said flora placement guide to
said linear extensions of said frame with said central opening of said
base in concentric alignment with said open center of said framework.
2. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said means releasably
securing said base of said flora placement guide to said linear extensions
of said frame comprise at least one notch formed in each of said
extensions, each of said notches of a size permitting a friction fit with
said base of said flora placement guide when said base is manually forced
within said notches.
3. The invention according to claim 2 wherein said means attached to and
supporting said linear members are a plurality of vertically adjustable
legs extending perpendicular to the plane in which said base of said flora
placement guide lies.
4. The invention according to claim 3 and further comprising:
a) a second flora placement guide having a circular base portion
concentrically larger than said at least one flora placement guide; and
b) a second notch formed in each of said extensions to releasably receive
said base of said second flora placement guide in concentric relationship
to said first flora placement guide.
5. The invention according to claim 3 wherein said filaments are flexible
and resilient.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This application relates to the art of making flower arrangements and, more
particularly, to novel and unique apparatus which may be used by the
novice as a guide to create professional quality flower arrangements in a
surprisingly short period of time.
The making of attractive flower arrangements requires the skill of
assembling different types and sizes of plants and flowers typically into
a container or yet other means which secure the flora together into an
effective arrangement. In a typical arrangement, background foliage is
desirable such as ferns or other such greenery. To create an effective
arrangement, the background foliage in addition to other flowers of choice
must be placed in a certain disposition and in certain amounts into the
flora securing means. It is usually most desirable to create a
substantially symmetrical arrangement. Unfortunately, it takes a keen eye
and much experience before most persons are able to create such
professional quality flower arrangements.
It is therefore a main object of the present invention to provide apparatus
which assists the most inexperienced flower arranger in creating floral
arrangements of varied outline and size which is of professional quality,
i.e. substantially symmetrical in configuration.
It is a further object to provide flower arranging apparatus which will
assist and train a person in creating a professional quality flower
arrangement in a significantly short period of time.
It is another object to provide flower arranging apparatus which includes
coded parts which contrast with the flora used therewith and which easily
and quickly indicate to the user the different types of flora to be used
with each part of the apparatus.
Other object will in part be obvious and in part appear hereinafter.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the foregoing objects, the invention comprises apparatus
designed to be used by the novice to act as a guide when assembling flora
into a professional arrangement. At least one dome-shaped guide is
provided for positioning over the flora securing means which may be a
simple flower pot with moistened florist foam deposited therein for
securely receiving the stemmed portion of the flora.
The dome-shaped guide comprises a ring-shaped base which may be snap-fit
into notches cut or otherwise formed into linear extensions of a four
legged, square frame which is positioned around the flower pot such that
the height of the frame is substantially the same height of the pot. The
legs of the frame are appropriately adjustable to conform to the height of
the container. When the dome-shaped guide is thus snap fit to the frame,
the ring-shaped base completely encircles the pot or container positioned
within the confines of the frame.
A plurality of elongated, flexible yet resilient wires extend from spaced
intervals along one side of the ring base and cross each other at a
central point to form a substantially symmetrical dome having spaced
openings between each of the wires such that flora may be passed through
the openings in the wire dome and manually inserted stem first into the
florist foam in the container located beneath and adjacent the central
opening defined by the base of the guide. To create the arrangement, the
stems of flora of one's choice are inserted into and secured in place by
the florist foam as described above. The flora should have its stems
previously cut to size such that when inserted into the foam, the free end
tips of the flora do not extend beyond the domed area defined by the
wires. The entire domed area defined by the wires should be completely
filled with the flora as described above. After this task is finished, the
person may remove the dome guide by simply unsnapping the ring base from
the frame which surrounds the container. The result is a floral
arrangement which is symmetrically shaped and pleasing to the eye.
To create a more glamorous arrangement, a second guide which is
concentrically larger than the first may also be used in combination with
the first guide when using a variety of flora. For example, in the
preferred embodiment of the invention the first guide is attached to the
frame as previously discussed and filled with background greenery such as
ferns. The first guide is then removed and the second, larger guide is
snap fit to appropriately placed notches in the frame such that it is
concentrically aligned with the previously removed first guide. Another
variety of flora such as baby's breath is passed through the openings
between the wires of the second guide and inserted and secured into the
florist foam as were the ferns such that the free ends do not extend
beyond the second guide. The step is continued until the dome space
defined by the wires of the second guide is filled with the baby's breath
and other such flora, as desired. At this point, other flowers such as
carnations and daisies may be added within the second guide dome to be
mixed with the baby's breath or, if desired, the second guide may be
instead removed from the frame and replaced with an even concentrically
larger, third guide into which domed area the flowers of one's choice are
filled. The third guide is then removed and the container and arrangement
are lifted from within the confines of the frame. The result is flora
which qualifies as a symmetrical, professional flower arrangement.
It is preferred that each dome-shaped guide be constructed with color coded
wire to not only contrast with the flora deposited therein, but also to
indicate to the user which type of flora are intended to be used with each
guide. For example, the first guide can be colored hot pink which is coded
for the background foliage layer and so forth. In this way a novice at
flower arranging can make a professional quality flower arrangement in
approximately fifteen to thirty minutes whereas without the flower
arranging guide, it would require many hours of training to create such a
professional arrangement.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded, perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the frame portion of the invention placed
about a conventional flower pot in the intended manner;
FIG. 3 is the view of FIG. 2 with a first guide attached to the frame and
showing manual placement of a first layer of background foliage into the
flower pot in the intended manner;
FIG. 4 is the view of FIG. 3 showing the first guide removed and the
second, larger guide attached to the frame for manual insertion of the
flower layer into the flower pot in the intended manner; and
FIG. 5 is a top plan view illustrating the relative placement of the first
and second guides when attached to the frame as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring now to the drawings, there is seen in FIG. 1 the preferred
embodiment of the invention comprising a frame, a first dome-shaped guide,
and a second dome-shaped guide represented generally by the reference
numerals 10, 12 and 14, respectively.
The frame 10 comprises four legs 16 which support a pair of spaced,
parallel members 18 and 20 and a pair of equally spaced, parallel members
22 and 24 which lie transversely to members 18 and 20 to define a square,
open center. Linear extensions 18', 20', 22' and 24' of each member 18,
20, 22 and 24, respectively, have spaced notches 26 and 28 cut or
otherwise formed therein to receive and secure guides 12 and 14 to frame
10 in the manner to be described.
First dome-shaped guide 12 includes base 30 of substantially circular
configuration having a plurality of elongated, flexible yet resilient
wires 32, 34 and 36 integrally extending at substantially equal, spaced
intervals from base 30 to form a dome having spaced openings defined by
wires 32, 34 and 36. It is noted that although the term "wire" is used
herein to describe the members extending from base 30, they need not be
made of conventional metallic wire but may be of any material such as
plastic, the important feature being their elongated shape. Second
dome-shaped guide 14 which is concentric and larger than guide 12,
includes circular base 38 having a plurality of flexible yet resilient
wires 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46 and 47 integrally extending at
substantially equal, spaced intervals from base 38 to form a dome having
spaced openings defined by wires 40-47. Although two guides 12 and 14 are
shown in the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings, it is to be
understood that only one guide or any number of sequentially
concentrically larger guides may be used when creating a flower
arrangement with the invention herein described.
To create a flower arrangement with the guidance of the invention, frame 10
is placed over the flora securing means such as typical flower pot 48 as
seen in FIG. 2. The height of frame 10 when placed upon a substantially
horizontal surface should closely approximate the height of the pot 48 and
in this respect, legs 16 are made adjustable by known means to achieve
this requirement.
The container into which the flora is to be arranged should have the means
to secure or stabilize the foliage in place as it is deposited into the
pot 48. In the flower arranging art, a green foam termed an "oasis" is
typically used for this purpose as it can hold a significant amount of
water to feed the plants via the stems inserted and secured therein. Thus,
pot 48 is seen to contain a predetermined amount of oasis 50 which has
been moistened with water.
Once frame 10 has been properly positioned around pot 48 as seen in FIGS.
2, 3 and 4, the first guide 12 is secured to frame 10 by snap-fitting base
30 into notches 26 on extensions 18', 20', 22' and 24' as seen in FIG. 3.
It is noted here that although frame 10 is the preferred securing means of
the various guides such as 12 and 14 described herein, it is contemplated
that the guides may be secured in the proper position over a floral
securing medium, such as pot 48 and oasis 50, by yet other securing means.
In any event, the proper securement of guide 12 over pot 48 should result
in pot 48 and guide 12 having a common longitudinal axis extending through
the point where wires 32, 34 and 36 cross each other (i.e., at the top of
the "dome"), and down through the center of oasis 50, this axis being
designated with the reference numeral 56 seen in FIG. 5.
With guide 12 thus in place about pot 48, a person selects background
foliage, such as ferns 52 seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, and cuts the stems 53
such that when stems 53 are inserted into oasis 50, the tips 54 of ferns
52 do not extend substantially beyond the domed area defined by wires 32,
34 and 36. FIG. 3 illustrates proper placing of ferns 52 into oasis 50.
Although only several ferns 52 are shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 for purposes of
clarity, it is intended that the entire domed area defined by wires 32, 34
and 36 be filled with ferns 52. Upon completion of filling guide 12 with
ferns 52, guide 12 is removed from frame 10 by unsnapping base 30 from
notches 26 and lifting guide 12 off frame 10 such that it does not disturb
ferns 52. The ferns 52 in oasis 50 should thus be positioned in a
symmetrical, ordered formation.
Referring now to FIG. 4, concentrically larger, second guide 14 is used in
succession to guide 12 when a more dramatic arrangement having a plurality
of layers of flora is desired. Guide 14 is concentric with guide 12 and,
when attached to frame 10 by snap-fitting base 38 into notches 28, shares
the common longitudinal axis 56 with pot 48 as did guide 12 when secured
in the proper position on frame 10. In this respect FIG. 5 illustrates a
top view of the invention with both guides 12 and 14 attached to frame 10
in the intended manner (although guides 12 and 14 are actually used
separately), it being clearly shown that guide 12, guide 14 and pot 48 are
all positionally aligned about frame 10 to share a common longitudinal
axis designated by reference numeral 56.
Having thusly secured guide 14 to frame 10 in the manner described above, a
variety of flora of one's choice, such as flowers 58, are cut at the stems
60 such that when they are manually passed through the spaced openings
defined by wires 40-47 and inserted into oasis 50, the flowers 58 do not
extend substantially beyond wires 40-47. Although it is not necessary to
completely fill the domed area of guide 14 as was desirable of the fern 52
layer, flowers 58 should be placed such that they are substantially evenly
spaced about guide 14 to create an effective arrangement. Other flora may
be mixed in with flowers 58 as desired, such as baby's breath and daisies,
for example. It is noted that artificial (e.g., silk or dried) instead of
real flora may be effectively used with the invention described herein.
After using as many flowers 58 as desired, guide 14 is removed from frame
10 in the same manner as was guide 12. If desired, another guide
concentrically larger than guide 14 could be used to create a third layer
of flora in the arrangement. A plurality of successively larger,
concentric guides may be used at random to create different sized
arrangements. The result, having removed all guides and lifting the pot 48
from within the confines of frame 10, is a styled, symmetrical arrangement
of professional quality.
It is noted that although the description of the preferred embodiment
herein is of guides formed to the domed configuration of guides 12 and 14,
it is contemplated that for arrangements of different styles, such as
those having a generalized triangular or oval outline instead of the
herein described "dome" outline, the guides can be configured accordingly,
the main requirement being that they assist the arranger in placing the
flora in the correct position within the flora securement means.
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